The Lawless Land

My review was written in January 1989 after watching the film on MGM/UA video cassette.

Minor sci-fi effort "The Lawless Land" serves to introduce some new talent. Pic played briefly theatrically last year ahead of home video release.

Helmer Jon Hess, who went on to shoot Carolco's "Watchers" for Universal release, shows technical know-how in this "Mad Max" genre tale set in "The Southern continent after the collapse (lensed in Chile). Nick Corri portrays Falco, who runs afoul of the chairman (Walter Kliche), as industrial magnate, when he elopes with his pretty daughter (Amanda Peterson).

In road movie fashion, much of the film is taken up by the chairman's goons, led by Road Kill (played by laconic Leon), chasing after the lovers, Odd casting has a tramp-styled beauty hitchhiking and getting mixed up in the violence, played by Peterson look alike Ann-Marie Peterson, evidently the actress' sister.

Corri exudes an engaging personality in the undemanding lead role, and went on to a subsequent toplined part in "Slaves of New York". Rest of the cast is fine, with some scene-stealing by Xander Berkeley as a folksy guy who always seems to turn up when the good guys need an assist.

Tech credits are acceptable, with an excellent out-theme ballad, "We Found Our Way", sung by Gary Stockdale.

The Lawless Land is an underrated and under seen classic. Hard to enjoy at first, one soon comes to realize the creativity and nuances of the movie on repeated viewings. It is an adaptation and improvement on William Shakespeare's classic love story, and using a stroke of subtle directorial genius, gives the sense that it is being narrated through a kind of God's eye view. The acting is effectively removed from the melodrama one would expect from the material in order to provide the viewer with a fascinating story of love in a world where emotion has run dry.

I am known for my ability to sit through horrible movies and find something entertaining about them. Having said that.....this is the only movie in my entire 50 years of life that I have ever paid to see and walked out of the theater without finishing it...I felt so bad about it that I didn't even ask for a refund...felt I deserved the punishment for having the audacity to think that this might be up there with Mad Max: The Road Warrior (which is the genre I assumed they were trying to emulate)Anyone who says this was an excellent movie needs to have their head examined. Horrible script, stupid special effects and just plain bad acting....years later I am surprised at the number of higher level actors that were involved with this.....